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By Jo Finzi
Most people say that when Rugby School pupil William Webb Ellis picked up the football in 1823 and ran with it, rugby was born. But did he know the game of Caid from his childhood in Ireland? Perhaps he had a Welsh chum who played Criapan, or a Cornish friend who practised “hurling to goales”.
Actually people all over the world, from the Maoris to the Eskimos, had played similar games for centuries, but William Webb Ellis gives his name to the trophy, and his school gives its name to the modern game, though the scholarly chaps were too gentlemanly to run with the ball.
Even after all that, there are still at least three different forms of rugby. There’s rugby union (15 men plus seven reserves, play lasts 80 minutes, five points for a try - which involves grounding the ball behind the goal, and three points for a goal kicked over the 3 metre high goal bar).
Then there’s rugby league (13 men plus four reserves, narrower pitch, four points for a try, two points for a goal).
The rules of these two games are also different, and involve how you run with and pass the ball, but the end objective is the same - getting more points than the other side.
Sevens heaven
Rugby sevens was invented by Scottish butcher Ned Haig from Melrose in 1883. It’s is a faster game, with seven men playing for seven minutes a side. It’s played as a tournament, and the length of games means that the whole tournament can be held over just a couple of days. Even the final is just a 20 minute affair.
It’s great for rugby novices as well as seasoned fans. The speed makes each match exciting viewing and you can watch your chosen team win in the time it takes you to eat your burger and down your drink.
Catch local action at the Emirates Airline Rugby Sevens which is played at end November/beginning December every year out at the Sevens ground on the Al Ain-Dubai road.
For further details please visit http://www.dubairugby7s.com
Rugby trivia
The oval shaped ball is actually a prolate spheroid… now you know!
For more fascinating facts and the complete history of rugby, go to http://www.rugbyfootballhistory.com/
If you’re hungry for more, and want to unlock the secrets of the maul, ruck or scrum, go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rugby_union
